No one would’ve expected mangaka Makoto Akui’s musical coming-of-age melodrama work of Ao no Orchestra, a.k.a Blue Orchestra, to make a noise in the world of modern anime. Anime based on classical music are mostly overlooked, and Blue Orchestra wasn’t an exception here.
Yet here we are! This anime did well enough to receive a second season right after its 24-episode first season. Season 1 was great, and fans are excited about this announcement. So, let’s dive in to find out more information.
NHK announced that Makoto Akui’s Ao no Orchestra (The Blue Orchestra) is getting a second season.
The anime’s first season premiered on NHK Educational on April 9 and aired for 24 episodes. Seiji Kishi (Assassination Classroom) directed the anime at Nippon Animation.
While we commend Nippon Animation for pulling this off despite being an old studio, they also paid close attention to details. They did exceptionally well using accurate fingering, mallets, slide positions, and bowings, which added to the experience of this anime.
However, we cannot ignore the CGI they incorporated during the violin-playing scenes. This took fans by surprise, and they were initially jarred. However, they quickly got over it as the episodes went by due to the quality of the content.
It was pretty unfortunate that this great anime did not receive licensing from either Crunchyroll or other Western licensors. Hopefully, the success of this show will encourage a Western licensor to pick it up.
The anime is exceptional, and it is quite a shame that Blue Orchestra hasn’t generated as much hype as its contemporaries. While this may be attributed to the animation quality, it is also related to the classical music aspect since most people find the genre boring.
However, it is worth watching, and fans are pleased that the anime is receiving a well-deserved second season.
About Blue Orchestra
Blue Orchestra is a manga series by Makoto Akui. It started serialization on the MangaONE and Ura Sunday platforms starting April 2017.
The manga is about Aono, a boy who is a violin prodigy but quit playing due to personal reasons. He meets Akine, a feisty girl, in school who inspires him to take up playing again. In their journey, not only will they improve their performances, but also heal their trauma together.
Source: Official Website
